Family historian, designer, and author of The Record Keeper: The Unfolding of a Family Secret in the Age of Genetic Genealogy

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Decisions, Decisions: Which of the Main DNA Testing Companies To Chose?

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One Test to Rule Them All?

More and more genetic testing companies are offering commercial, take at-home DNA tests as people’s interest in learning about family heritage grows. This is not a comprehensive list, but I want to highlight the five I use to support my research. Especially when it comes to DNA cousin matches.

The BIG 5

Price: $79

Overview: Founded by Bennett Greenspan, FTDNA was the first company dedicated to direct-to-consumer ancestry testing in 2000 by collaborating with the University of Arizona. 

DNA Test Users: over 2 million

DNA Features:

  • 90 reference populations sampled
  • 6 million reference samples
  • Method of obtaining DNA: Cheek swab
  • Maps your ethnic origins with accurate percentages and geographical maps
  • Deeper ancestry insights that show which DNA you share with ancient European groups
  • DNA matching (to show you the list of your relatives in the database)
  • Chromosome Browser

Genealogy Features:

  • Insights into the history of your surname
  • Access to 2 million records

Unique features:

  • The test can even detect regions that constitute less than 1% of your DNA. This is complemented by an interactive map and historical facts for each region

Submit your raw DNA results to its platform for free.

Price: $89

Overview: Founded in 2003 by Gilad Japhet. Began offering historical records in 2012.

DNA test users: 6.5 million 

DNA Features:

  • 2,114 Geographic Regions tested
  • Large European user base
  • Method of obtaining DNA: Cheek swab
  • DNA matching to relatives in the database
  • Can upgrade for health testing

Genealogy Features:

  • Family tree builder
  • Access to 19.4 billion records

Unique features:

Submit your raw DNA results to its platform for free.

Price: $99

Overview: Founded Ancestry.com  in 1983 by Paul Allen and Dan Taggart

DNA Test Users: 25 million

DNA Features:

  • 2,600 Geographic Regions tested
  • 71 million reference samples
  • Method of obtaining DNA: Saliva
  • DNA matching (to show you the list of your relatives in the database)
  • Maternal/Paternal organization tools
  • DNA communities/migration patterns
  • Chromosome Browser

Genealogy Features:

  • Family tree builder
  • Access to over 20 billion records
  • May upgrade to Global record access
  • May add on access to Newspapers.com
  • May add on access to Fold3 (military records)

Unique features:

  • ThruLines (a way to see which common ancestor in your tree you share with DNA matches)
  • PetDNA
  • Traits (Additional cost)

Ability to download your raw DNA results, but cannot upload raw data from another testing company.

Price: $119

Overview: Anne Wojcicki co-founded 23andMe in 2006 with Linda Avey and Paul Cusenza, who had previously worked at DNA micro-array company Affymetrix, to change the future of genetics and healthcare.

DNA Test Users: 15 million

DNA Features:

  • 2,750 Geographic Regions tested
  • Method of obtaining DNA: Saliva
  • Health predisposition reports (Identifies your risk of certain diseases)
  • Carrier status reports
  • Wellness reports
  • Family health history tree
  • Trait reports
  • DNA Relatives (familial matches in their database)
  • Chromosome Browser
  • Ancient ancestry report (Neanderthal)
  • Maternal and Paternal Haplogroups analysis
  • Ancestor Locations tool

Genealogy Features:

  • Automatically creates a family tree of the people who share your DNA
  • Historical matches

Unique features:

  • Their in depth health reports have FDA approval as a risk screener for a variety of genetic conditions and diseases
  • Can opt in to be connected with DNA Relatives or remain private

To download your raw DNA results you may have to email them and wait 1-3 weeks if the data page doesn’t work. At this time you cannot upload raw data from another testing company.

Price: FREE (upload up to 5 kits)

Overview: Founded in 2010 by Curtis Rogers with his co-founder John Olson and a small group of volunteers. GEDmatch is a global database of autosomal DNA data; test takers from other DNA companies choose to upload here, making the chances greater in matching a wide array of testers.

DNA Test Uploads: 1.5 million

DNA Features:

Genealogy Features:

  • GEDmatch Forums
  • 400 million people in GEDCOMs (Genealogical Data Communication) when importing or exporting genealogy data to different family tree softwares. GEDCOM is a data structure created by the Latter-day Saints Church (who also developed FamilySearch.org) for storing and exchanging genealogical information so that many different computer programs can use it. It is identified by the file type “.ged”.They are text files that contain the information and linkages necessary to exchange genealogical data between two entities. The entities may use the same or different software application. 

Unique features:

Chromosome Browser

Join the Genetic Witness Program – GEDmatch

Upload your raw data from other testing companies.

My Advice (That You Didn’t Ask For)

You can do whatever you want. 

But here are a few things to consider: If you look at the list of main testing companies and determine you’d like to pay for one because their focus is on something you care about more than something else (for example, if you are testing purely for discovering your heritage or getting ethnicity estimates vs. health reports vs. DNA cousin matching, etc.) you should do that. 

However, if you are interested in building up your family tree because you care equally about genealogy and genetic genealogy, (or at least 70% / 30%) here is my advice: 

Start with AncestryDNA. Wait for a holiday coming up and they WILL have a sale. Like clockwork. 

While you wait, build your family tree. You can do this for free. The only thing you should consider buying aside from your testing kit would be if you want to search for records and save them to the people you add to your tree. By having a subscription, you will also be able to view any public trees of other subscribers. This comes in handy when you get your DNA results since you may want to learn more about the branches you have in common, and it can help you fill out your tree faster. (Make sure you verify their information.)

Once your results come back, download your DNA raw data! It will save in a zip file—no need to open it. You can now go to MyHeritage.com, FamilyTreeDNA.com, and GEDmatch.com and upload that zip file to their database. Though you won’t get the full set of features you would get having tested directly through them (reminder, GEDmatch isn’t a testing site) you will still be able to see what relatives that have also taken the test on that site match with you. 

They will also give you an ethnicity estimate based on their specific testing populations and regions. (That is why you will see different percentages from the various companies.)

GEDmatch is a little different in that, like stated above, it is a database of uploaded raw DNA data only. They don’t offer a testing kit. The best bet for finding a larger pool of matching relatives is if you upload your data to MyHeritage, FTDNA, and GEDmatch. Many test takers will do this as well, but if by chance they only do one company or one company plus GEDmatch, then you’ll be able to connect with them!

Have Fun Exploring!

It is the most exciting thing when you learn to scan all those names and start seeing the same surnames pop up on all these databases. It’s especially exciting (and maybe confusing or shocking) to see surnames trend on your matches that you have no idea where the name came from. 

You’ll also want to notice what names AREN’T showing up on the matches or family trees of other test takers. Many times there is a perfectly good reason for that, other times, you may need to start diving a bit deeper to figure out where those folks fit in with you.

Don’t miss the next Get a Clue post.
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